Improvement in drawers for furniture



2 SheatS Sheet 1.- 1.1. FOX. Dr'awe r for Eurpiture.

P atente d F eb. 9,1875.

GRI-Fmc c v UNITED STATEs PATENT, @FFICE.

JOHN J. FOX, or BOSTON, MA SSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN DRAWERS FOR FURN ITUR E.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. l59,5'70, dated February 9, 1875; application filed December 21, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN J. FOX, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Drawers for Furniture, &c., of which the following isa full, clear, and exact descrip tion, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a drawer having my improvements applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section through the drawer-case with the drawer therein. Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line as w of Fig. 2, the drawer being pulled out to its greatest extent. Fig. 4. is a plan of the under side of the drawer-case and drawer; Fig. 5, sectional detai My invention consists in a drawer, provided at each side of its rear end with a folding flap, having a pin or projection, which moves within a groove formed in a piece attached to the runner on which the drawer slides, or in the runner itself, each flap being also provided with a cleat, which comes into'contact with a stop projecting down from the casing or from the runner of the next drawer above, which limits the amount of motion of the drawer, and prevents it from being accidentally drawn out of its casing.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the manner in which I have carried it out.

In the said drawings, A represents the casing of a drawer, B, to each of the back corners of which is pivoted a flap, a, which may be folded inward against the rear end of the drawer, as seen in Fig. 5. At or near the lower outer end of each flap projects inwardly a bent pin, 1), of the form seen in Fig.1, which, when the drawer is introduced with the flaps folded, Fig. 5, enters a groove, 0, formed in the upper side of blocks 0 screwed to the side of the runner D, on which the drawer is to slide.

The manner by which the pin 12 enters its groove 0 will now be described: On the under side of each of the blocks 0 is secured a plate, d, to which is pivoted a latch, e, having a spiral spring, h, at its back, which keeps it in the position seen in Fig. 4, the inner surface of the latch forming a portion of one side of the groove 0.

When the flaps a are folded, as seen in Fig. 5, and the drawer is pushed in, the pins 1) b strike against the rounded or inclined ends of the latches e e, which yield so as to allow them to slip by into their respective grooves c c, after which the latches are forced, by their springs h h, back to their original positions, thus intercepting the pins 12 b, so that as the drawer is pulledout the pins will be made to travel in the grooves c c and opening the flaps a a out, so as to form prolongations of the sides of the drawer, as seen in Fig. 2, and when the drawer is pulled out to its full extent, the cleats or projections i i at the upper outer ends of the flaps are brought into contact with stops k is projecting down from the casing, or from the runner of a drawer above, which thus prevents the drawer from being pulled out of its casing, the open flaps a a serving to support the drawer without sagging, the upper surface of each flap bearing against the under surface of that portion of the casing or runner of the drawer above it. \Vhen the drawer is pushed in, the pins reenter their grooves c c, and as they travel through the curved portions of these grooves the flaps are gradually folded in against the back of the drawer, as seen in Fig. 5, so as not to interfere with the complete closing of the drawer. To remove the drawer it is simply necessary to raise its front when pulled out to its full extent, which depresses the flaps a a, so that their cleats i i will clear the stops k 70 when the drawer is free to be taken out. The inner end of each flap a, is cut away at I, so that when it is folded and the drawer is being slid into its casing, the flap will not come into contact with the stop k, which would otherwise prevent the entrance of the drawer.

From the foregoing it will be seen that none of the supporting mechanism is exposed to view, and that the width of the drawer is not required to be contracted, (as is the case with other drawer-supporting devices heretofore used,) which is a great advantage where a number of drawers are placed side by side, as

in grooves c c, in combination with suitable stops for limiting the motion of the drawer, operating substantially in the mannerset forth.

2. The spring-latch e, in combination with the grooved block 0, substantially as and for the purpose described.

Witness my hand this 16th day of December, 1874.

JOHN J. FOX.

In presence of- N. W. STEARNS, W. J. CAMBRIDGE. 

